Chapter10-The Terrifying Pit

"Have you heard about the legend of the island immortal?"

"Yeah, isn't it said that there's a kind immortal on the island who helps people increase their strength? I was planning to save up some money and go check it out."

"Don't go! It's a terrifying death trap!"

"What? That's impossible! Haven't people gone there before? They returned successfully, and everyone who came back leveled up."

"Exactly, that's why it's a trap! At first, people could go there and return, but later, those who tried to go back never came back!"

"Ah, that's terrifying."

Similar discussions were happening everywhere.

The island they were talking about was none other than the place where Owen lived.

And Owen was the so-called immortal who had set the trap.

According to the rumors, the immortal first helped people level up, but he was actually fattening them up for slaughter! Once their strength reached a certain level, he would devour them all in one bite.

The so-called power-up was nothing more than an obvious piece of cheese. Whoever took the bait would be marked by the immortal. Even if he let them go temporarily, once they were fattened up, he'd season them with pepper and salt and enjoy them as a snack.

Some even speculated that the island itself was capable of consuming people, and the kind immortal was actually a super demon who raised an arcane beast as a pet!

Of course, Owen knew nothing about these terrifying rumors.

He was leisurely strolling through the mountains with his Siamese cat.

"Hmm, Avel, I feel like something's changed in the mountains," Owen said, already accustomed to chatting with the cat, despite knowing it wouldn't answer. "I can't quite put my finger on it. Maybe it's just the influx of people recently."

The cat remained silent, squinting its large golden eyes as it glanced in a certain direction.

Owen continued walking, unaware.

Along the way, he picked some ripe wild fruits. These bright red fruits tasted similar to tomatoes from his previous life, only more sour. They'd be perfect for balancing out overly sweet drinks.

"Hmm? Since when was there a big pit here?" Owen complained, walking closer. "Damn it, this is my mountain! Who was rude enough to dig a hole here without asking?"

"What if a customer goes for a walk and falls in? I'd have to pay a huge medical bill!"

"Hmm? What's that smell…"

Owen's words trailed off as he froze in shock.

His eyes widened as he stared at the bottom of the pit.

There, a pile of foul-smelling objects lay—something Owen had never expected in his wildest dreams.

It was a heap of corpses!

Bright white bones and dismembered body parts.

Just one look made Owen's scalp tingle, and a cold shiver ran down his spine.

He screamed, scooped up his Siamese cat, and ran.

Owen didn't dare look back.

He was terrified that some monstrous creature might emerge from the pit.

He bolted straight into his pub, immediately locking all the doors and windows, pulling down the curtains, and hanging a "Temporarily Closed for Renovation" sign on the door.

"Waaah, Avel, why did I think it was a good idea to go for a walk today?" Owen whimpered as he crawled into bed, clutching his fluffy Siamese cat for comfort. Only then did he feel a tiny bit safer.

The cat rolled its eyes dramatically. Though slightly annoyed, it stayed put, allowing Owen to cling to it.

Before long, Owen fell asleep.

The following days were spent in constant fear.

"Who could have done this?" Owen thought, imagining all sorts of possibilities. "It could've been ruthless bandits or robbers. They probably heard about my pub doing well and planned to rob and murder."

"Or maybe it's mercenaries! Flora did mention that she and her sister were captured by mercenaries nearby."

"Or could it be man-eating beasts? No, no, that's unlikely. Beasts don't dig pits."

But what gave Owen some peace of mind was that the pub was built sturdily enough that, as long as the doors and windows were sealed, even someone with magic would have a hard time breaking in.

And his food supplies were plentiful. He could survive for years without leaving.

Several days passed, and neither bandits nor beasts showed up, which helped Owen relax a bit.

Feeling more at ease, he ended up sleeping in until noon the next day.

"Phew, that was a great sleep. I'm starting to feel a bit lazy," Owen muttered, rolling over and reaching for the bedside table.

That was Avel's designated spot.

No matter what time Owen woke up, his hand would always land on the soft, chubby body of his cat.

But today, his hand came up empty.

Suddenly wide awake, Owen leaped out of bed.

The cat wasn't there.

A chill ran down his spine.

"Avel! Where are you?" Owen called out in panic.

Could that terrifying, pit-digging monster have sneaked in while he slept and taken his precious cat?

The thought of losing Avel was unbearable to Owen!

He grabbed a sturdy iron shovel and began searching the pub cautiously.

No sign of the cat at the bar.

Not in the bathroom either.

Nor under the tables!

Owen was growing more anxious by the second. Desperate to find his best friend, he momentarily forgot his fear.

He suddenly froze.

Just now, he heard a faint noise.

It sounded like something or someone licking food, a noise similar to the one Avel made when drinking water.

Owen's heart raced.

Normally, Avel ate and drank only in designated spots. But the sound wasn't coming from any of those places.

"Could it be…" Owen's eyes reddened as a horrible thought crossed his mind. "Could it be some monster devouring Avel?"

The moment this possibility entered his mind, rage flared within Owen.

Though he was usually overly cautious—basically a coward—and preferred to avoid confrontation, when it came to his dearest friend, he found the courage to fight back.

"Monster, let go of my friend!"

Owen charged forward with the shovel raised.

"I'll fight you!"

After only two steps, he spotted his cat.

There was Avel, looking perfectly fine—actually, more than fine.

The Siamese cat was licking something, making contented little noises.

"Wait, is that… a rabbit!" Owen gasped as he saw the fluffy white creature, rushing over to stop his cat. "Avel, let go of that rabbit! Don't eat it!"

The thought of his fluffy, adorable cat eating another cute, fluffy animal was too much for Owen to handle.

Avel glanced at Owen, a bit exasperated, but didn't stop licking.

Now that Owen was closer, he could see clearly.

The rabbit had a deep wound on its leg, and Avel was gently licking the injury, seemingly trying to heal it.

As Owen approached, the rabbit twitched its ears nervously but didn't run, allowing the cat to continue its work.

"Oh, it's healing?" Owen scratched his head. "I guess since the rabbit isn't resisting, Avel isn't hurting it."

Seeing that Avel wasn't in danger and the rabbit was fine, Owen finally relaxed.

He stretched and did a few light exercises to ease the tension in his body.

As for how a cat was healing a rabbit, Owen didn't think much of it.

After all, animals had their own ways of doing things.

As a human, it was better not to meddle too much.

He already had a cat—what harm could another rabbit do? At least Avel would have a new animal friend to keep it company.

And so, the decision was made.

"My stomach's growling," Owen realized, checking the time. "Guess it's lunchtime again."

Since there were no customers, sleeping until noon didn't disrupt anything.

Owen pulled out a piece of beef, thawed it, marinated it, then gathered some potatoes, mushrooms, and homemade sausages. He took everything outside to the courtyard.

In one corner of the yard stood a grill Owen had set up.

Today, for some reason, he had a craving for grilled meat.

Thinking of Avel's preferences, Owen also grabbed some chicken breasts and a few mackerel.

"Let's get started!" With the ingredients prepped, Owen lit the fire and began grilling.

The delicious aroma of grilled meat quickly spread throughout the backyard.

Avel, the Siamese cat, along with the injured rabbit it had found, sat side by side next to Owen. They both stared intently at Owen's actions, their eyes fixed on the food. Though they didn't make a sound, the drool dripping from their furry mouths said it all.

"Haha, you greedy little thing," Owen chuckled, knowing Avel's personality all too well.

Skillfully, he brushed some honey on the chicken breasts and wings, avoiding any heavy seasoning, and placed them over the fire. A few minutes later, the half-cooked chicken was ready. Concerned that Avel might eat too quickly, he gave the cat small bites, reminding it, "Be careful with the bones when eating the wings! Take your time, no one's going to steal it from you."

Avel dove in, purring contentedly as it devoured the chicken.

Beside the cat, the white rabbit stared longingly at Owen.

Feeling sorry for it, Owen pulled out a fresh lettuce leaf and offered it to the rabbit.

The rabbit glanced at the leaf, then turned its head away, its eyes still glued to Avel's grilled meat.

"Huh? You want to eat meat too?" Owen burst into laughter. "Haha, you've got to be kidding me. I've never seen a rabbit eat meat before."

But then, he reconsidered. This was a different world, after all. He couldn't apply Earth's logic to everything here. Maybe rabbits really did eat meat in this world.

Curious, Owen picked a small piece of chicken breast and placed it in front of the rabbit.

In an instant, the rabbit pounced on the meat like a starving wolf and began devouring it with great enthusiasm.

"Well, this is something new!" Owen smacked his forehead. "You guys take it easy; there's plenty more."

Seeing how much the two fluffy creatures enjoyed his cooking, Owen felt encouraged and quickened his pace, tending to the grill while feeding himself and the two animals, staying busy yet content.

Meanwhile, three figures had arrived at the island.

Two men and one woman, all young and wearing finely crafted armor of the same design, clearly from the same organization.

"Is this the place?" the black-haired man in the lead asked cautiously, scanning the surroundings. "This area is desolate, full of trees and rocks—just the kind of place an arcane beast would hide."

"Be careful. That arcane beast is both cunning and vicious. From now on, every step we take must be cautious."

They walked slowly, stopping at every noise, treating every rustle in the grass as a potential threat.

"Wait!" the red-haired woman suddenly exclaimed, looking to the side. "I smell something foul over there."

Following the stench, they found the source: a gruesome pit filled with bones and rotting remains.

"This is it. It must be the work of that wretched arcane beast!" the red-haired woman said, frowning as she scanned the area.

"Stay on guard! The rumors were true. That arcane beast really is hiding in this mountain," she warned.

"The beast is wounded; it can't have gone far," the black-haired man said, narrowing his eyes as he spotted smoke rising from the mountaintop in the distance. "Let's head there."

The trio moved swiftly toward the smoke, which, unbeknownst to them, was just Owen grilling food.

At that moment, Owen was happily eating, unaware of their approach. He had some grease on the corner of his mouth, and most of the ingredients had already been consumed.

The two small animals at his side hadn't stopped eating either. Their bellies were now round and full, but it seemed that neither of them wanted to stop before the other, as if it was a competition to see who could eat more.

Owen found it amusing and didn't interfere. After all, animals weren't dumb. When they couldn't eat anymore, they'd stop.

Just as he was about to take a bite of a freshly grilled corn cob, he looked up and saw three figures standing before him.

The three had appeared so silently and suddenly, like ghosts, that Owen nearly dropped the corn in surprise.

"Who are you?" The red-haired woman, just as surprised as Owen, eyed the pile of food. She hadn't expected the smoke to come from someone grilling, and the smell was so tempting that it took all her self-control to maintain her knightly dignity and not drool.

"Huh? You're asking who I am?" Owen thought the question was strange. At first, he assumed they were customers, but if that were the case, how could they not know that he was the only owner and bartender here?

"This is my home. I should be the one asking who you are," Owen said, sizing them up. They were dressed quite well, with shiny armor and weapons adorned with gemstones and gold.

Owen's eyes lit up.

There was no doubt about it. These three were the so-called fat sheep—or rather, the wealthy clients who might become VIP members!

Just as the red-haired woman was about to speak again, the black-haired man suddenly grabbed her and pulled her behind him.

She was about to ask what was going on when she, too, noticed what her companions were staring at.

Their eyes were fixed on the two animals sitting by Owen's feet.

A cat.

And a white rabbit.

But what they were really staring at was the white rabbit, which was happily gnawing on meat.

The red-haired woman gasped.

Oh no! That was the very arcane beast they had been searching for!

And yet, here it was, sitting obediently by a human's side, eating meat. It even seemed quite docile. But if that was the case, what kind of being was this human who had tamed it?

The same thought occurred to all three of them. They stood frozen in place.

Whoever could tame an arcane beast had to be an immensely powerful individual!

One wrong move, and this person could obliterate them with a single glance.

"What's going on with them?" Owen wondered, seeing how tense and stiff they were. "They look pretty serious. They must be powerful people."

"I can't beat them, so I'd better be polite," he thought.

After all, people didn't hit those who smiled. That rule should apply in this world too, right?

With that in mind, Owen flashed a very warm, friendly, and utterly non-threatening smile.

Seeing his smile only made the trio even more tense.

The youngest of the three even broke out into a cold sweat.

They stared at each other for a few more minutes, the tension thick in the air, until the red-haired woman noticed something odd.

The man in front of her had no mana fluctuations at all!

In this world, anyone with a hint of power, even warriors who didn't rely on mana, would usually emit some mana energy.

The complete absence of mana fluctuations could mean only one thing.

Owen was a regular person.

The other two knights soon realized this as well.

After a moment's thought, the black-haired man concluded that there had to be some misunderstanding. Regardless of how it looked, an arcane beast would never submit to a mere mortal.

The man who was smiling at them like a fool had to be someone important.

"I'm sorry, but who exactly are you?" the black-haired man asked politely. "And what are you doing here?"

"I'm no one," Owen said honestly. "I'm just a regular guy running a pub here."

"A pub?" The black-haired man thought he had misheard. "What pub?"

"You must have climbed up the back way," Owen explained. "If you'd followed the main road, you'd have seen that this is actually a pub. This is the pub's backyard."

The black-haired man didn't care about the pub.

But he could tell that Owen was willing to answer questions and didn't seem hostile, which suggested that he wasn't a violent man.

The black-haired man cautiously asked, "Since you've been here for a while, have you seen a rabbit arcane beast?"

"A rabbit arcane beast?" Owen was confused. "What rabbit arcane beast?"

Seeing his genuine expression of confusion, the black-haired man pointed at the white rabbit by Owen's feet.

"Wait, you mean this little guy?" Owen laughed, finding the whole thing absurd.

He bent down, scooped up the docile white rabbit, and squeezed its chubby belly before turning to the three stunned knights.

"You must be mistaken. This rabbit was found by my precious cat. It must've sneaked in here."